Fortnightly Magazine - June 2010

Recharging Employees

How to make sustainable performance improvements at any utility.

Sustained performance improvement is often a difficult objective to achieve in a large company. Many such attempts involve various cross-functional initiatives that leave companies with unfinished projects, lower morale and disappointing results. Commonwealth Edison (ComEd) has found that the key to sustained performance improvement is the establishment of a cadre of high-potential managers to address company-wide initiatives full-time.

Byline: 

Cheryl Hyman et al.

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Hybrid Storage

Ultracapacitors and batteries work together to solve power quality problems.

Ultracapacitors and batteries work together to solve power quality problems.

Byline: 

Chad Hall

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Vendor Neutral

ABB buys Ventyx; Powerspan and WorleyParsons CO2 capture test results; Honeywell lands Progress Energy contract; Opower releases customer engagement platform; HECO picks Siemens for smart-grid stimulus project; and MORE.

Byline: 
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Transactions (June 2010)

Calpine buys 5 GW of generating capacity from Pepco Holdings for $1.65 billion; Xcel buys two Calpine plants in Denver for $739 million; Asset acquisitions announced in April by Constellation, Kaukauna Utilities and others totaling $3 billion. 

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V2G Shuffle

Smart charging is just the start of the electric vehicle revolution.

Electric vehicles (EV) now rolling off automakers’ production lines are expensive and limited in range, but they mark a technological tipping point. By tapping into the smart grid, EVs promise to free transportation fuel from the physical medium—raising its practical value while simultaneously diminishing its cost.

Byline: 

Michael T. Burr, Editor-in-Chief

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Cap and Innovate

An alternative approach to climate regulation.

Low carbon prices might not produce sufficient incentives for firms to innovate and reduce emissions in the long run. But relatively high carbon prices can be politically unacceptable and invite consumer backlash. Where’s the right balance? A PUC chairman offers an alternative approach to managing GHG emissions.

Byline: 

Ron Binz

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People (June 2010)

SueDeen Kelly joins Patton Boggs as partner; Chairman Pat Wood III elected to First Wind board; CMS names Mamatha Chamarthi as the company’s first CIO; Executive changes at Centerpoint, Constellation, Duke, FirstEnergy, TransCanada, Tres Amigas, UniSource; Black & Veatch, Navigant; EPRI, NARUC, New York ISO, and more.
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Rethinking Revenue Assurance

Reducing leakage to improve the bottom line.

Utility companies are actively engaged in a range of activities with the goals of reducing the effects of weak demand, a higher uncertainty in energy costs, increased capital costs, and stagnant rate cases. Among these efforts, a rigorous revenue assurance capability likely will produce the greatest immediate and long-term return, as it can produce 1 to 2 points of revenue recovery through a single, unified investment.

Byline: 

Victor Milligan

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Tipping Point

Industry giants start the EV revolution.

Reports of the electric car’s death are greatly exaggerated. Technology, economics and politics are driving a new start for electric vehicles; already dozens of EV models are heading for U.S. showrooms. Electricity won’t replace gasoline overnight, but utilities are planning today for tomorrow’s transportation load.

Byline: 

Steven Andersen

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Plugging In

Can the grid handle the coming electric vehicle load?

As electric vehicles become commonplace, will the grid be able to handle the extra load? Too many cars plugging in at once might cause disruptions and necessitate costly infrastructure upgrades. Handling the vehicle load in a smart way, however, will ensure a smooth transition to the plug-in future.

Byline: 

Dean Murphy et al.

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